Recruiting for the Tyler Junior College Men’s Team is a process that is not an easy, one-day decision.
Head Coach Mike Marquis views recruiting as ongoing, daily work that can’t take a day off.
“I think when you take a day off from recruiting, you’re falling behind,” Marquis said. “I got former players coaching Division I, high schools, other junior colleges, and other assistants coaching in those levels. It’s all about networking and finding a right fit for TJC.”
That right fit for TJC, said Marquis, is an athlete who can excel in multiple facets of college life.
“Over here (TJC) we go for someone who is willing to get better in the classroom, citizenship, and basketball,” Marquis said. “If they follow in those categories, it is a right fit for us, but it doesn’t hurt when the player can contribute on the court and is talented.”
Having coached for 25 years, Marquis is familiar with the recruiting process and has gone through recruiting trips that have taken him to areas even outside the country.
“I traveled to Antigua (Guatemala), Mirtle Beach in South Carolina to and back in two days, Iowa, and California,” Marquis said. “There are a selective type of players we search for so we have had to do more traveling.”
Freshman Daniel Edozie from Compton, Cali. was recruited from Contennial High School. Edozie had several small to mid-major DI offers coming out of high school and even Big 12 Conference University Iowa State. Ultimately, he chose to go to TJC to develop his game.
“Well, the recruiting was all over the place with colleges. I thought I would sign somewhere but they would turn me down, or I would turn down colleges I at first thought I would sign to,” Edozie said. “Although I had other DI schools looking at me, I knew that I wanted to go juco (junior college) so I can develop my post and overall game.”
Sophomore Abdi Nur from Georgia has played against NBA players Derrick Favors and Chris Singleton. Even though he may not be in the league, Nur chose to improve athletically before moving foward.
“I came to TJC to improve as a player and I can see a change in my back-to-basket post-moves and my mental toughness,” Nur said
Nur first met with Marquis after a pickup game in front of multiple coaches. Marquis was left impressed by Nur’s talent . He was the first coach to have met with Nur who afterwards received offers from small DI universities such as Duquesne University and Alabama A&M.
“I got offers from other DI schools, but I knew I needed time to develop as a player, and playing here has done that for me,” Nur said.
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